In fact Monday morning at 8am has been hailed as the “golden hour” for affair-seekers, according to new research.

Over 100,000 messages are sent between affair-seekers on any given week, with an average of 600 messages sent per hour.

But during 8am-9am on Monday morning, the figure triples to 1,900, making it the most popular time for cheaters to get in contact with their secret lovers.

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The second most popular time was Friday between 9pm and 10pm, while the least popular time was Saturday morning between 10am and 11am.

The study, by extra-marital dating site IllicitEncounters.com, also quizzed love rats to find out how they hide their sordid affairs.

Members of IllicitEncounters.com were asked for their “top tips” on how to avoid getting caught when contacting their secret tryst – especially when their significant other might be around.

Cheaters said the best way to avoid suspicion is to “call them by a name of the opposite gender”.

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People around you are suspicious. If you’ve been warned by friends or family that your partner is cheating, there’s a huge possibility that they are playing away.

A “burn phone” – a separate device that isn’t your personal or work phone – also came highly recommended by love rats, just in case your partner scrolls through your messages when you're not looking.

“Monday mornings, normally on the commute to work, are the first opportunity adulterers get to communicate”

Christian Grant, IllicitEncounters.com spokesman

Finally adulterers said it’s important to refrain from exchanging photos because snaps of a stranger on your phone would be sure to alert your partner.

The site's spokesperson, Christian Grant, said: "With a wife and, possibly, children to commit too, meeting up with your secret tryst over the weekend, or even communicating with them, can often be impossible.

"You don't have the time and you're likely spending plenty of time with your wife and kids all day, so the risk of your mistress' name popping up on your phone for all to see is far too great."

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Christian continued: "That means that Monday mornings, normally on the commute to work, are the first opportunity adulterers get to communicate with each other after a long weekend of silence.

"It also makes it incredibly difficult for anyone who suspects that their partner might be cheating on them to actually catch them out.

“We also have a lot of high flying professionals on the site; on Monday's at 8am they're either on their commute into work or already in the privacy of their office – the perfect time to discretely send a much awaited message to their lover."